June 08, 2010

Julie Packard: On World Oceans Day, a Call to Action

It’s strange to be celebrating World Oceans Day in the midst of the biggest environmental catastrophe for our oceans in American history. Like the big spills in Santa Barbara and Prince William Sound, what’s happening in the Gulf is both a human tragedy and an ecological nightmare. And, of course, it’s only just begun.

The images of oiled birds and soiled shorelines are shocking, but we know from experience that we’ll only clean up a tiny fraction of what’s been released. The lingering effects of toxins in the water and the food web will last for decades, as they have in the sea otters and on the rocky shores of Prince William Sound. The chronic effects from long-term exposure to oil will affect the next generation of ocean life by altering its reproductive function and lifespan.

It will take years of research to understand the full impacts of the oil and dispersants on ocean food webs –- in the Gulf and beyond. In the meantime, the shrimpers and tackle shop owners along the Gulf shores don’t need decades to feel the pain; their daily lives and their livelihoods will change forever.

I’ve worked long and hard on behalf of wildlife and nature, and I’m often dismayed to see how much the public and our leaders focus on the human stories instead of the bigger picture of protecting the natural systems on which our lives depend. But this time, I have to agree. The biggest tragedy is a human story.

But it’s not what you think.

It’s not about the tragic loss of human lives in the accident, or the vast economic impacts, or the lost ways of life. The tragedy is that we all stood by –- citizens, government, industry –- and figured that everything was under control. Meanwhile, we extended our reach deeper and deeper, into riskier and riskier waters, in oceans whose health is already under siege.

We have the opportunity, right now, to come to our senses, and to do the right thing on behalf of our oceans, that sustain us in SO many ways.

In 1969, a blowout on a drilling platform in the Santa Barbara Channel released more than 3 million gallons of oil into the ocean. The spill coated a stretch of the California coastline in thick sludge. It killed thousands of seabirds, and countless other creatures. As a native Californian, I remember the day well. For the first time, I realized that something I had taken for granted could be taken away. And, if this happened, I’d only have myself to blame.

That dark day served as a wake-up call to the nation about the fragile nature of our environment, and its importance to the well-being of all life on Earth. The spill catalyzed the biggest environmental movement our country has ever seen, compelling lawmakers to enact scores of landmark laws: the National Environmental Policy Act, the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, the Endangered Species Act, the Coastal Zone Management Act, and the National Marine Sanctuaries Act.

Today, these laws form the foundation of our system of environmental protection. It’s hard to imagine where we’d be without them.

Forty years after the environmental movement began, it’s time for a rebirth. Now is thetime to usher in a new era of conservation.

Though oil spills make headlines, it’s the chronic, long-terms threats like overfishing, non-point source pollution and coastal development that have much bigger impacts on our oceans. Oil spills -- no matter how large -- pale in comparison to the effects of carbon pollution that’s causing ocean warming and acidification.

For all our hard work, it’s obvious that we haven’t done enough to stem the continued decline in ocean health. Nearly a decade ago, the two ocean commissions laid out a clear blueprint for ocean policy reforms, and we’ve taken some baby steps in implementing their recommendations. Now, with the whole nation focused on our oceans and coasts, we need to put these ideas into action.

For starters, we need to face up to the risks of offshore oil drilling, especially in deep areas and the Arctic where we are in no way ready to respond to a spill. We need to tighten regulations and put in place effective government oversight.

More to the point, we must recognize that we can’t drill our way out of our dependence on foreign oil. We simply cannot trade the health of our oceans and coasts for a few more barrels of oil. More drilling is not the answer. Rather, we need to get in gear and support renewable energy, create green jobs, stimulate our economy, and safeguard our environment.

Next, we must immediately invest in learning more about our oceans.We need a massive investment in ocean ecosystem science and technology. When my father founded the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute 20 years ago, he was appalled at the state of technology investment to explore and understand the deep sea. The need remains, so we’ll have the information to manage our oceans as integrated living systems. The oil spill is a grim reminder of how we’re "flying blind" as to where to direct immediate cleanup and restoration efforts, not to mention understanding the impact of oil pollution or dispersants on all ocean life.

To achieve these goals, we need to create a national ocean policy, to better align federal agencies toward a common goal of achieving healthy oceans. In the wake of the Santa Barbara spill, the U.S. enacted environmental protection laws focused on land, air, and water. It’s now time to articulate a comprehensive policy for oceans and coasts. I commend the Obama Administration for substantial steps taken to develop this policy.

Last but not least, we can pay for these measures -– and more –- by creating an Ocean Investment Fund, using lease revenues, mitigation funds and other user-generated funding. It’s time we linked the resource fees to the resource itself by devoting a bigger portion of ocean revenue to its appropriate use – protecting and restoring our productive oceans and coasts.

I said we can succeed because we’ve done it before. There’s also another reason.

At the Monterey Bay Aquarium, I get to walk into our exhibit galleries daily and see people every day falling in love with the kelp forest or the sea otters or the seahorses. Our visitors leave with a commitment to taking action on the ocean’s behalf -– using a Seafood Watch pocket guide, sharing materials with their schools, joining as members, or bringing friends back to learn more.

I believe that people everywhere are seeking a common vision of a sustainable future on Earth, one that’s practical, attainable and in which they can play a part. Aquariums can support people around the world who yearn for reasons to hope, and give them guidance about ways to make a difference for our oceans -– as our incredible team at the Monterey Bay Aquarium has tried to do.

Our oceans have provided each of us with so much meaning, so much joy. Let’s focus on doing a few really important things to safeguard their future, with the opportunity we have before us right now.

Comments

Fishing only the right has no effect on the gap near the leak is and will remain for the rest of their lives in our lives. Fishing can be local, temporary effect if left untreated, but this spill kills thousands of square kilometers, and the Sea life completely.

Aren't there a certain type of bacteria that breaks down som of these crude? Also why are we so gullible to think that we can't have recycled and filtered cooking oil as bio diesel which is cheaper to manufacture by balacing NaOH and ETOH to make the litmus paper pink (alkali). Of course use steam for blending the chemicals. Then all you have to do is retrofit the gas tank and lines with polyehtylene. I heard that McDonald's are using some of it in its trucks. Obama has had cash for clunkers, how about cash for engine conversion?
This explains the low compression ratio in today's engine: There is some gov't and oil companies' complicity to milk the global population.

We need to make choices even when none of the alternatives are perfect. Even when it's a question of picking the lesser evil. This is where the well intentioned but radical activists do the most harm.

We NEED to drill for oil. We NEED atomic energy. And of course, we NEED to minimize deleterious effect upon flora and fauna. But we must pursue a rational compromise reflecting the desires and values of our citizenry.

You may want to live a prehistoric lifestyle, as when man's footprint on earth was insignificant, but don't try to impose that upon the rest of us.

Help us obtain more domestic oil. Do help us preserve our environment. And do steer a steady course continuing Monterey Bay Aquarium's good work.

have watched my whole life ,one ecological disaster after another . Reactor meltdowns ,Love Canal , Acid rain , Oil spills , Chemical spills , military and industrial waste left to poison land,water and communities worldwide , global warming - just to name a few . All horrible concerns I remember from high school in the 70's .... We seem to care so much , and yet the convience of living everyday life seems to always matter much more . Sad beyond belief , and I see no answer that doesn't eliminate the human element . How else to leave this poor planet alone to heal ? I hope there is an answer somewhere . I am looking for hope.

i live in Canada and this disaster has amplified our responsibility to cease off-shore drilling here. I will support every effort to explore alternative sources of energy in order that we may finish with our dependence on oil.
Thank you Monterey Bay Aquarium. I applaud what you continue to do for our wildlife and our oceans.

This is not a political environmental issue so much as a people issue, and until everyone gets that every being is connected, apathy wins out. It's not just the big oil companies, its mostly the general population's mindset>>I was born on the Gulf coast and all my sweet childhood memories include, the aqua blue water, the amazingly abundant aquatic sea life and the easy going way of life on the sandy beaches. My heart is truly broken.

Is there any possibility for a display of several small home-size aquariums that depict stages of oil spill contamination? They might show the ocean conditions of normal, early spill, full spill, initial stage of clean-up, final stages of clean-up, return to normal or as close as it will get. The time frame could be depicted by a human, beginning as a toddler, then progressing through life. Who knows, you may have to show a grand-kid at the last stage. The spill stages might be a good shock in comparison to the rest of the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and may be more effective as a teaching aid, compared to videos and illustrations. Plastic plants and no live fish, of course.

My wife and I are Charter Members, and have enjoyed watching the Aquarium grow in stature and presentation over the years. :-)

Frank: I'm glad that you're concerned about long-term repercussions. It's important to know that about one-quarter of all fish stocks on the planet are collapsing or already collapsed due to overfishing, and an additional half of the world's fish stocks are being fully exploited (i.e., they're already being fished to capacity). Overfishing isn't just a local, temporary problem; it's a global disaster already underway. Julie's not blaming fishing in general; she's correctly pointing out that irresponsible fishing practices around the world are having an enormous, potentially permanent impact on the oceans. Furthermore, mentioning one problem doesn't take weight away from another; these are all urgent issues we face, compounding with each other and demanding serious action at global as well as regional levels.

Overfishing is a bigger cocnern than the gulf spill? fishing, over, under and just right does not have the anything close to the impact the gulf spill has and will have for the rest of our lifetimes. fishing can have localized temporary effect if not managed but this oil spill will kill thousands of square miles of sealife completely. leave it to Julie to find a way to blame fishng